PERSONAL EVANGELISM

PERSONAL EVANGELISM PERSONAL EVANGELISM
L. L. Gieger

“And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever” (Daniel 12:3). The honor that God confers upon those whom he counts as wise is far beyond human mind to comprehend and human tongue to describe. The glory in which they shall participate will pale to insignificance the brightness of the noon-day sun shining in all its fulness, and will make the fondest beauties of earth and sky to shrink into nothingness. “They that be wise shall shine above the brightness of the firmament.” Daniel could find no words to describe the height of their exaltation and language today is just as feeble as it was then. But, who are these wise ones? "he that winneth souls is wise” (Proverbs 11:30). With the prospect of such rapture before us, what more could be desired from this hour’s study than that we should be inspired to engage in Personal Evangelism at all cost, and that we should know better how to do the work that precious time may be put to its best advantage. The wisdom of being soul winners is easily discerned by believers. The value of one soul—worth more than the whole world (Matthew 16:26)—would identify as wise the manner of it, to say nothing of the awful doom from which it has been snatched, the joys in heaven and in earth that are occasioned by the reclaiming of one ruined life, the weakening of the satanic forces by recruiting to cast against him one of his own troops, the arresting of life’s flow through the bed of evil and channeling it through a course of usefulness and honor, or of the eternal reward to be received by both winner and won. Any one ot these benefits would abundantly declare the wisdom of the soul winner, while all of these, with so many others, attend the salvation of each soul.

Beloved, the one who is not engaging in this work and making it his business—his vocation— and all other endeavors but side lines— avocations—is permitting the glory above the stars and the ’oys beyond comprehension to slip through his fingers as grains of sand in the hands of a playing child. Those who waste their opportunities by neglecting personal evangelism are sure to regret it, either in time or in eternity. What was said of the saints scattered from Jerusalem—“they went everywhere evangelizing”— should be said of every child of God today. If we fail to do this of our own choice and accord, who knows but that God may cause persecution or war to drive us from our shells and scatter us to the four winds, even against our wills, that his will may be done in earth as ic >s in heaven? The Jewish converts in Jerusalem held the gospel unto themselves unt-l persecution, led by Saul of Tarsus, drove them from their complacency (Acts 8:1-4). Will we force God to treat us the same way to make us personal workers with definite feelings of individual responsibility to the lost and dying souls that go screaming into eternity? How, 0 how, can we sleep at night without having tried to gain some soul for the Savior during the day? My effort today is not to enable you to make straight “A’s” in your personal evangelism. If I can inspire you to make nine “B’s” our study will accomplish all for which I could hope, and all for which I pray. Many books have been written on plans and practices; and, for this reason, this lesson shall not deal with the actual work itself but with the foundation upon which each may build according to his own initiative and personality, and according to the needs of the particular field in which Providence may place him. It shall be mine to discuss the qualifications for personal evangelism, and leave specific programs for another speaker at another hour.

Perhaps it would be well to explain a little more in detail why this line of study is being pursued. When people are fully qualified to do the Lord’s work, in the Lord’s way, and according to the Lord’s will, there is no power that can overthrow the plan or defeat its ultimate success. Progress may be slow at times, and difficulties may seen unsurmountable, but success crowns the efforts of those who qualify themselves for some noble endeavor and who follow up with prayerful, faithful work. These are the ones who take advantage of opportunities presented, and who turn seeming defeat into other channels of usefulness and blessing. The one who isn’t qualified couldn’t make the most of an opportunity were it handed to him on a silver platter. He wouldn’t know what to do with it and would probably so misuse it as to do more harm than good. We must therefore be qualified for the great work before us. I trust that this may suffice to show why I direct your attention to the qualifications, which are here, rather arbitrarily, divided into three groups of three “B’s” each, for simplicity of study and ease of remembering.

I. Physical Properties for Personal Evangelism
Be Neat. The young man, perhaps John Mark, was not prepared to deliver the story of the Christ when, at Jesus’ arrest, he fled naked (Mark 14:51-52). Neither was Peter properly clothed for teaching others the truth the morning Jesus appeared to him and his companions after they had loiled all night and had taken nothing (Jonn 21:7). Men and women who appear publicly clad in such a fashion ihat they could not take off any more and stay out of jail are poor representatives of the purse of all living. The virtue of modesty must ever adorn the profession of Christianity and the dress of the saints must become the purity of their thoughts. Best results will usually follow when the worker dresses in keeping with the community. He should not over-dress, lest he become a laughing stock, any more than he should underdress, lest he damage his influence by being thought immoral. Circumstances will have to determine whether or not hat and gloves are to be worn or a handkerchief placed in the lapel pocket, but neatness is a must. Be Clean. This part of personal evangelism should go without saying; nevertheless it must not be forgotten. This applies to body and clothes—to finger nails, shoes, and breath. Although sinful practices and thoughts are primal ily rebuked, uncleanness of the physical body comes into the picture in the words, “Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Corinthians 7:1). The same thought is conveyed through the words, “therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s (1 Corinthians 6:20). Then, think of the powerful words of James, “Wherefore lay anart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness” (James 1:21). The word “filth” occurs in the Bible four times; “filthiness” occurs sixteen; and “filthy” is found sixteen. In morality, the word signifies sin, but relatively, it means dirty. Keep your clothes, body, and mind clean. Be Erect. Haughtiness is repugnant but slouching is about as bad on the other side of the balances. Stand up, or sit up, hold the shoulders comfortably back, and fear not to look the person with whom you are talking in the eye. Show by your open countenance and pleasant expression that you are sincere. The one engaged in personal work must flee those things which, were they known, would cause shame. Paul counseled Timothy, “Flee also youthful lusts” (2 Timothy 2:22). When Peter said to the lame man at the beautiful gate of the temple, “Look on us” Acts 3:4), it is evident that he desired eye to meet eye. This requested look is not “to gaze at” as upon something remarkable, but voluntary action to lift the eyes and see the humble sincerity of Christ’s servants. We are not in the business of peddling tales or of engaging in sinful practices; therefore, we are straightforward in looks and speech.

These are all that I here mention of the physical properties and I am sure you think of any number of others; but remember, be neat, be clean, and be erect. Now, let us consider some qualities of the mind conducive to good results in our house-to house visi-tation.

II. Mental Attitudes for Personal Evangelism.
Be Alert. Although Christians are commanded to be sober and studious (1 Peter 5:8; 2 Timothy 2:15), these mental attitudes are not to be confused with being slovenly and lazy. However tired may have been the body of our Lord, his mind was continually awake to the needs of humanity. Mental burdens that would have soon destroyed a weakly physical frame were borne by him through all the (lays of his earthly ministry, for he could see the end from the beginning. Paul’s alertness led countless souls to the Savior by moving him to take advantage of every opportunity: in heathen cities he converted idolaters (Acts 17), in jail he taught the jailer (Acts 16), in shipwreck he found occasion to teach the islanders (Acts 28), in Rome he even converted some in Caesar’s household (Php_4:22). We must be careful not to let complacency overtake us with the illusion: “We have the truth for them; let them come and get it.” Be alert, active, awake, ready to help anyone, any time. Be Happy. If one is busily engaged iii a work for which he is qualified and unto which he has devoted his life, the problem of unhappiness will largely be solved. This attitude of happiness in the work of saving souls must be exhibited even if you must force a smile. Success does not crown the efforts of the complainers and murmurers; and if others do not see us happy in the religion which we profess, they will not be too enthusiastic about accepting it. Happiness may be increased or decreased by exterior circumstances, but it is not borne of them. It will arise, if ever we possess it, not from what we have, but from what we are; not from where we live, but from how we live. Preachers and others sometimes find themselves unhappy when they move into a new locality. Why? Because of some remembrances that are near and dear, coupled with a degree of uncertainty concerning what the future may hold for them. A reserve of faith will turn the uncertain future into a greener field of untried joys, and proper evaluation of thfe past will deepen the hope for a place where separation will be forever over. Thus, in the happiness of loving memories, living faith, and longed-for hope, the hours are filled with labors of love, and smiles and warm handclasps greet prospective saints. Read Php_4:4. Be Calm. One without a temper is worthless, but the one who does personal work must keep that temper under control. No temper means no convictions, no stand, “anybody’s dog that will hunt with him.” But when the temper is handled properly, one is able to permit ridicule and sarcasm to jab viciously; yet reply to it without malicious anger (1 Peter 3:15; Colossians 4:6). Deliberate coolness under fire of attack develops that gentleness of spirit modeled perfectly by the Lord we love. This gentleness is the strength of the lion gloved with the tenderness of a mother’s love. Remember, brethren, if you forget all else I say we are dealing with the most precious thing in the universe when we deal with the ever-existing soul. Handle it carefully, calmly, prayerfully—you might bruise it; you might contaminate it; you might lose it! Calmness in thought, in speech, in action must be our constant endeavor. Patience should be more evident with each passing day; yet, alas, it is not always so. Things, so simple and clear to us, misunderstood by others are likely to make us sarcastic, caustic, and bitter. Remember always, the tender, precious soul located within that body, and act calmly, deliberately. I'm sure here, too, you are able to supply many other mental attitudes to be developed by the children of God, but I hasten to leave this section of qualifications for the third set of “Be’s.” This time in the realm of the spiritual realities.

III. Spiritual Qualities for Personal Evangelism.
Be Converted to the Christ. Do I hear someone saying, “We all understand that the one to engage in this work must be converted to Christ”? Well, brethren, evdiently some do not. Although this statement is a sad commentary on members of the Lord’s body, there are those even being supported by faithful brethren to win souls for the Master, who themselves are not converted to Jesus Christ. Oh, yes, they tell others that he is the Son of God and the Savior of the world; they proclaim faith, repentance, confession, immersion, worship, and service as ably as any others; yet possess not the spirit of primitive Christianity. They backbite and devour one another and seem to think they best climb by stepping on other’s heads. These know
all the evil and dirt on all the preachers, elders, and congregations, and fill their private conversation with the garbage of hearsay. They may be converted, but not to the Christ of Calvary. We must not “ostrich-like” hide our heads under the sand of unconcern and suppose that all is well, but we can keep our noses out of other people’s business and remain speechless in matters that are not our concern. Our business is to preach Christ without fear and without favor. We must learn to sell him, not ourselves; and, to do it, the same must be said of our living that was said of Macedonian giving; they “first gave their ownselves to the Lord” (2 Corinthians 8:5). When one is first brought unto the light and is persuaded to walk therein, enthusiasm akin to fanaticism radiates through his words and deeds. Sometimes unsympathetic listeners dampen the fires of early devotion; and, all too often, a coldness on the part of older brothers and sisters causes a leaving of first love (Revelation 2:4) and the deadly disease of discouragement fastens itself upon the soul. When we are truly converted to Jesus Christ we will realize that disappointments and failure come not from him, and we will be able to climb through these to higher planes of Christian living with the same noble spirit that was exhibited by him in the midst of his enemies. We must develop ourselves into the likeness of the incomparable Christ. When we recognize him as the one altogether lovely, the lily of the valley, the bright and morning star, the choicest gem of all the treasures of which earth and heaven can boast, the one that must be possessed for without him all our goodness turns to ashes and soot, we begin to see but faintly the spiritual quality standing behind personal evangelism.

Brethren, we would be but deceiving ourselves were we to suppose that we are converted to Christ while we have no desire to live for him, to live for right, and to tell others about him. The one who thus claims must surely not understand what is real conversion. He may be no better than the sectarian who supposes conversion is some feeling he has never felt or hearing some voice he has never heard. Christ must become our all in all—our one absorbing thought. With Paul we must learn to say, “I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I; but Christ liveth in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of him who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20-21).

But, beloved, there are some converted to Jesus Christ—at least in a sense—who are not converted to the gospel of Christ. They love him in so far as their instruction goes, but of them it is true, as it was of the Jews of old, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). Or, as Paul wrote, “Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God” (Romans 10:1-3), We are to be converted to him, yes; but we must not be led to think that conversion to the loving and kind spirit of Christ is the end of the matter, and we are fully prepared for personal evangelism with this alone as our spiritual stock in trade. Be Converted to the Gospel. Paul was thus converted, and wrote to the saints in Rome, “I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:15-17). Unto the Christians in Corinth, hear him: “And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:1-2). In the same letter, a while later, he wrote, “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:1-2). The simple, plain plan of human redemption recorded on the sacred page must be regarded as law and order above and beyond appeal or improvement. “Back to the old paths” must be our plea; “what does the Bible say?” must be our prayer! “Where the Bible speaks, we speak; where the Bible is silent, we are silent; call Bible things by Bible names; and, do Bible things in Bible ways,” has been made light of even by some brethren who either did not realize what they were saying, or who have insufficient respect for what God has said and too much for their own think- so’s. To engage in personal evangelism that will convert to Christ, we must be converted to the gospel. “Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him Godspeed: for he that biddeth him God-speed is partaker of his evil deeds” (2 Jno. 9-11). Moreover, Paul warned that God’s final curse would rest upon all who preached any other gospel than that which had been delivered by the apostles in that first century. Conventions and assemblies cannot annul one line of sacred writing, and any practice, contrary to it, if followed by majority or minority, will result in defeat far worse than destruction. Oh, the need we have for the incomparable gospel! Do not compromise it; do not change it; do not misrepresent it, brethren, beloved of the Lord.

Faith, repentance, confession, immersion, worship, service, and keeping ourselves unspotted from the world are the basic tenets of the gospel. Be sold on them, believe them, obey them, and teach them wherever you go. We must never become so absorbed in popularity and pride that we will permit opinions or practices to change, modify, or alter our teaching of that which is written. The gospel is the mold which turns out Christians, and the least change casts reflection on the master Carpenter who prepared the mold. However pleasant the personality, fluent the speaker, or winsome the manner, unless one knows the gospel and is willing to practice it and to preach it kindly, yet firmly, he is a detriment to the cause of Christ. The gospel does not end with the four steps by which one enters into Christ, but the one not converted to these cannot do personal work that will save souls. Scriptural worship of singing, praying, studying, communing, and giving must be maintained at all cost and the one doing personal evangelism must be thoroughly converted to these items of Christian worship. Compromise here is as fatal to acceptable worship as compromise in morals is fatal to Christian living, and all must know that a life of purity is a positive demand of the gospel of our Lord. The personal evangelist—the one endeavoring to save souls through his daily contacts as distinguished from pulpit evangelism—must believe every word of holy writ and permit the same teachable spirit to possess him that he expects to find in the one he is teaching. To be converted to the gospel without being unto Christ will enable him to know the truth concerning his own and the other’s duty, but will make him harsh, sarcastic, and smart-alec. His conversion unto Christ, with its characteristic qualities of humility, thankfulness, and love must travel hand-in-hand with his conversion to the gospel, which will make him stand for right.

However, even here some are converted to the gospel of Christ—in a sense—without being converted to the church of Christ. Fundamentally, this is impossible; but there are those who believe the gospel in its basic principles who have much to learn con-cerning the church, its place, and its work. Be Converted to the Church. This is God’s ordained sphere for religious behavior and it must be respected. “These thing write I unto thee,” said Paul, “hoping to come unto thee shortly: But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:14-15). One is to have deep and profound respect for the church; that is, for Christ and his people. Its provided safety, its work, its position, and its life must be the constant concern of those who work to make it grow. The organization that God appointed for the church is to be respected and taught unto others. The elders, deacons, evangelists, and teachers comprise the corps of members, and each is to fill his place in harmony with the will of God. Unto this we must be converted; we must realize that no improvement can be made in it; we must not be guilty of changing God’s order in any particular. Being converted to the church is the end of carelessness in at-tending services, and the beginning of earnest and de-voted prayers and efforts in its behalf.

Some of our younger preachers seem to have the idea that they are to go out and run the church—that they know more about it than the old gray-headed elders. Some unscrupulous older members have taken advantage of their youth, boosted them to the skies, and convinced them that none are qualified to be elders, we should get rid of the ones we have, and turn the work of the church over to leaders and committees. And some, not being converted to the church of Christ, have fallen before such wanton blasphemy. Beloved, may I beg you, realize that the church Jesus established cannot be improved upon in any particular: in position, in practice, in organization, or in doctrine. Believe in the Christ of the church, and believe in the church of Christ. Until one is thoroughly converted to the one church of the New Testament, and to the New Testament of the one church, he is not qualified spiritually to teach the gospel of Christ and lead others out of darkness into light.

There is no realm this side of glory that is as high or as holy as that occupied by the church of Jesus Christ. This lofty position, properly appreciated, enables us to worship God in the pure air of heavenly atmosphere and serve the interests of purity and truth far above the low lying clouds of envy, malice, and deceit. Here we have communion with our Lord; here we have the blessed association of saints and angels; here we labor and pray; here we have all our spiritual needs abundantly supplied. The thing that is difficult to explain, however, is how some will argue for the church and declare with vehemence how they would not want to live in a place where the church is not permitted to exist, yet will be dilatory, slothful, and careless about their attendance and support. These may be converted, but not to the church. When they are converted to the church of Christ, they will be converted to the divine way; when converted to the gospel of Christ, they will be converted to the divine work; when they are converted to Jesus Christ, they will be converted to the divine word. Thus converted, no power in earth can, and no power in heaven will, overcome them or defeat their ultimate success. When we are converted to the divine way of doing the divine work according to the divine word, our qualifications will be complete for personal evangelism.

IV. Conclusion.
There are three motives that prompt us in the great work before us: faith, love, and fear. Faith moves us because God commanded us to go and tell the story to the lost and dying world (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; 2 Timothy 2:2; 2 Timothy 4:1-8). Love drives us to teach others the truth because our joys in Christ increase to the happiness of all concerned when they are shared with others (Luke 15:6; Luke 15:9; 1 John 4:1621). Fear, not for ourselves but for others, sends us out into the highways and hedges to locate the lost and rescue them from certain destruction, plucking them as firebrands out of the burning (2 Corinthians 5:10-11; Galatians 6:7-10; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9). These motives will give prayer to the spirit, impulse to the heart, action to the body, and tidings to the lips; and who will be able to withstand the onslaught of truth when these motives and these qualifications take control?